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UN Says At Least 733 Iraqis Killed in January

Militants in Fallujah, Iraq are seen in this file photo from January.Photo: AP Photo

BAGHDAD (AP) — The United Nations says at least 733 Iraqis have died during violence in January, excluding casualties from an embattled western province.

The figures issued Saturday by the U.N.'s mission to Iraq show 618 civilians and 115 members of the security forces were killed in January. But the UNAMI statement left out deaths from ongoing fighting in Anbar, due to problems in verifying "the status of those killed." The figures also leave out insurgent deaths.

Al-Qaida-linked fighters and their allies seized control of Fallujah and parts of another Anbar city, Ramadi, last month after authorities dismantled a protest camp by Sunnis angry at what they consider second-class treatment by the Shiite-led government.

The government and its tribal allies are besieging the rebel-held areas, with fighting reported daily.

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